5 months ago
- Wolverines
- Published: Jan. 02, 2026, 10:57 a.m.
Marlin Klein said he’d either return to Michigan successful 2026 aliases spell pro.
The honorable mention all-Big Ten tight extremity has chosen to participate nan NFL draft, he told ESPN connected Friday, ending a four-year tally pinch nan Wolverines conscionable arsenic caller coach Kyle Whittingham takes over.
Klein appeared successful 36 games for Michigan making love backmost to 2022, a profession that saw him gain a starting domiciled this year.
In 11 games, Klein caught 24 passes for 248 yards and a touchdown, career-high numbers for nan athletic, 6-foot-6, 250-pound tight end.
Born successful Germany, Klein moved to nan United States for his inferior twelvemonth of precocious school. He attended schoolhouse successful North Carolina, past moved to Georgia, wherever he attended Rabun Gap-Nachooche High School and started fielding assemblage offers.
Michigan jumped successful precocious but landed Klein anyhow acknowledgment to its history processing tight ends. He redshirted successful 2022, past played down Colston Loveland and AJ Barner connected nan Wolverines’ nationalist title squad successful 2023.
Loveland continued arsenic Michigan’s apical tight-end target successful 2024, but Klein worked his measurement up nan extent floor plan to No. 2 and nan team’s starring blocking tight end.
He was voted squad skipper for 2025 and had a monster play opener, catching six passes for 93 yards and a touchdown against New Mexico. But injuries and struggles wrong Michigan’s passing onslaught constricted his opportunities. Klein only had 2 much outings pinch much than 2 catches, a three-catch, 37-yard crippled against Maryland and four-catch, 39-yard time against Texas successful nan Citrus Bowl.
Klein has an further twelvemonth of assemblage eligibility left, but will alternatively make nan leap to nan NFL. His size and athleticism should let him to trial good astatine nan combine, raising his banal travel draught weekend.
“The NFL is getting an explosive subordinate that tin do immoderate is asked of him -- play typical teams, tally artifact and drawback nan ball, and personification who is not going to kick astir his usage,” Klein told ESPN. “They are getting a subordinate that’s consenting to dice for his teammates.”
Klein is nan 4th Michigan subordinate to publically state for nan NFL draft, joining vessel opt-outs protect extremity Derrick Moore, linebacker Jaishawn Barham and violative lineman Giovanni El-Hadi.
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Aaron McMann is nan main hit writer covering nan University of Michigan shot programme for MLive Media Group, wherever he's worked since 2014. He went from covering precocious schoolhouse sports successful nan Flint area to a...
